We've heard for some time about India becoming a superpower and dominant global economic player. They are a big IT player for sure. Software companies and developers are now growing even more. It's great for IT but it's a way, way more complex issue for the country to be a superpower with just IT. Some mixed thoughts...
There are 1.2 billion people living in India. In truth, we were stunned by the living conditions of so many tens of million people. About 90% of the population has a very different existence to what us North Americans are used to.
We first thought it was the worst poverty level we've ever seen. We imagined the worst area of Toronto and then multiplied it by a 100 and even that couldn't describe what it looked like. But it's not poverty per se, it's just life in India.
For many, they have little or no money. Up till now, the country has been primarily an agricultural economy. For centuries- family to family and village to village- the milk they produced from cows and water buffalo and the crops they grew were consumed by themselves and whatever was left over they exchanged for clothing and other extreme basics.
For many, they have no other means to build a house or buy a car other than selling property that has been passed on from generation to generation. One of our guides had described himself as middle class and classified many of the Indian people in this category (we'd say he's just almost surviving). He said that when his daughter will marry, he will have to sell some land as he has not enough money for the wedding.
Some of the most basic things that we take for granted are a big deal here- like water.
The monsoons (I didn't really know that it's just heavy rain spells) are extremely important in India. It's in the papers daily, it's the basic necessity of living for millions. Yesterday it rained all through the night in Jodhpur and everyone was ecstatic that so much water had fallen (I kid you not). We just take all this stuff for granted. Water will continue to be a big deal here for many years if only just to get pipes into the ground.
Arranged marriages are the norm, still. In Talking to our guides in Agra (population 1.3 million), Varanasi (1.2 million), Jaipur (2.3 million) and Jodhpur (1 million), it's about 85- 90% with love marriages only 10- 15%. One of our guides (38 years old) said his children will probably not be arranged ones as he wants them to be happy. We're not saying that arranged marriages are bad; it's just hard to fathom a global player with keeping this tradition.
Primary and secondary school education is free.
Girls get a free uniform, books and even a free bike to go to school. Boys get free books. Children literacy is 97%- the exception being beggars and gypsies that the government is finding hard to get them into school. University is another issue. Our guide's son in Khajuraho graduated from college but can't find work and he has no more money for him for more university (even if it's free, there's room and board that he doesn't have). Still, he considers himself middle class, he helps by buying in the poorest of shops and gives out candy to the children:
There are literally millions of cows walking around the cities, on roads and highways.
Imagine if you can the Gardiner and Hwy 401 across Toronto and downtown with thousands of cows moving very slowly from one lane to another with no fear at all of being hit. Then think of the poop being squished by the buses, cars, tuk tuks, motorbikes, rickshaws and bicycles. It's a major issue here. And when they die (about a million a year for the country) there is a government system to dispose of the carcasses. There was a strike while we were here in several cities because the workers weren't getting paid. The carcasses stayed in the streets and as it is monsoon season, disease became a key concern. This had to reach the floor of parliament before the strike was resolved. The point here is that this whole issue of cows will take some time to resolve. Even today, if a person 'poaches' a cow for the hide or meat (which has started in some outskirts for survival), their whole family could be killed as a consequence. We're talking thousands of years of Hindu culture and utter blasphemy in killing a cow.
In our travels, we certainly saw IT, some new manufacturing, some new apartment complexes and a few new 'smart cities' being built. There remains 90% of infrastructure which needs to be addressed. 
We also heard that the younger generation are almost defiant in their pursuit of global equality and wealth expectations. It's seems monumental to get from where they are to where they want to be (buildings, roads, sewage, hydro, communications and a corrupt government).
There are real social and infrastructure issues. Every day in the papers since we've been here, there is rape of women reported as this continues to be a real problem (at least they're keeping it in the open). Politics are steeped in religious cultures (Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Sikh) and often don't mix well.
We see primitive buildings everywhere with poor sewage and road infrastructures. This doesn't appear to be a high priority.
You still see 3 (even 5) people together on motorbikes without helmets, dirt and paved roads, rickshaws with up to 10- 12 people jammed in together and 30 to 40 year old buses and trains overcrowded and packed.
Garbage is everywhere you look and is not considered a concern.
What I'm highlighting here is that there is a social mosaic that is very complex and a huge undertaking to attain a social standing that the younger generation want.
It's understood that there are parts of India that are different like Mumbai with their business towers, subways and thousands of new streets and apartments. People are 'rich' by India standards but this is still a very small fraction of the population. We just question how the country will attain a comparable social infrastructure that the younger generation are demanding without decades of enormous investment. India has already spent trillions (overpasses, metros, streets) but you simply cannot see it with so much more to be done.
Please allow me to make light of what I consider to be a solution to these issues. My personal opinion? It's the Indian spices. It drives you crazy and all you think about is water to quench the thirst and you're in this vicious cycle. So eliminate the spices! Next, don't even think of using water without it being bottled with a certified cap on it. And never, ever tell an Indian (remember they're 90% Hindu and don't kill animals) that you like eating beef as they wouldn't understand it even if you said it. Instead, introduce it as vegetarian bliss and don't say what it is. In a nutshell, get rid of their crazy hot spices, get some good steaks into the system, get some bingo going, switch the tea to beer and they'll all reach Nirvana before they know it!
All kidding aside, there are many beautiful aspects of the country that we have experienced and seen. The history is awesome, the people are wonderful. It's just that this desire to become a superpower is going to take a some time. Our guess?- probably two more generations. We certainly wish them well.
Next stop- Bangkok, Thailand.
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